My 5 Favorite Tips For Managing time

Managing our time as parents can be frustrating. We have playdates, lunch dates, one on one playtime, and daily educational activities we must adhere to. Keeping a schedule is one way to keep things organized, but when your plate is full, you have meals to cook, and kids to entertain, work can sometimes be placed on the back burner. As the bacon earner in my home, it’s important that I balance both work and family.

I’ve discussed many times that balancing work and family doesn’t exist, that we must bring them together and act as one. This is true when it comes to big picture stuff, but when it comes to the smaller more day-to-day tasks, we do need a little more balance.

I’m going to give you my five favorite tips for managing your time wisely when you have a million and one things to do. These tips will help you balance your day, set clear boundaries for your family, and help your kids understand when it’s time to get down to business.

1. Create A Set Schedule

I have a giant massive planner that I keep. I use a planner to write down scheduled times I’m working, have client meetings, phone calls, Fox’s therapy, playdates, family events, etc. My life is organized in a chaotic flowy way, but with an autistic kid, that’s the way it goes. I suggest picking up a planner with 12-18 months, full calendars, and all the decorative goodies that go along with it. >> This planner is my favorite one.

2. Prepare The Night Before

When the kids go down to bed and the house is silent, that’s the best time to sit down, make a list of to-dos, schedule some social media posts for the next day, and catch up on email. Getting a little ahead of yourself for the next day before settling in for your Wednesday night shows will save you stress and anxiety in the long run.

3. Eat The Frog, First.

It’s an old saying, “Eat the frog.” It means to do the most difficult thing first. Why? Because counter to what you may think, the morning is generally when you are at your optimum performance level. Any follow up or repercussions can be managed during the same day, and you can breathe easier by putting the task behind you.

4. Delegate Household Tasks

Your time is more valuable spent working than cleaning a pile of dishes in the sink. You can hire someone from Tidy, Task Rabbit, or find a nice local nanny that does double duty with kids and cleaning. If you’re not down for any of those options you can always invest in a robo vacuum. My mom has one for her giant house and has been vacuuming way less because of it. No one likes crumbs all of the carpet. >> Robo Vacuum to Save The Day

5. Set Clear Boundaries

Remember when I said get a planner? A planner is helpful for in setting boundaries for yourself. Yeah, that’s right, yourself. As business owner parents it can be super difficult to give ourselves a cut-off time or a point in time where we stop working. In my planner, I schedule a two-hour window for lunch. This way I have time to play with Fox, make lunch, eat lunch with Fox, and put him down for a nap. Every now and then we’ll use that time to go out to lunch which is a special treat.

Setting boundaries with your kids are also important. You’ll need to clue your kids in on the amazing things you’re doing and how important it is to get shit done. If the kiddos want to join in on helping you with whatever your work might be, I say let them. Introducing your kids to your world will make them stronger.

Whichever way you slice it, managing parenthood and a business is a huge challenge. It’s vital you create your own list of go-to time management skills and begin mastering them – even if you’ve yet to start your business. What are some of your favorite time management skills? Do you utilize your own set of skills or planner? Share with us in the comments!

New On The Blog

How To Identify A Good Social Media Manager From A Bad OneThere are many frogs out there when it comes to social media management. These frogs I’m talking about are the ones who are offering to manage your social media presence for $500 or less. These people have...

This Is How To Know If You're Ready To Hire Someone For Social MediaI run into people or have conversations with business owners who think that they’re ready to hire someone on for social media. Their reasoning? They know they have to do social. That’s it. Nothing...

Recently I had a friend who contacted me to look into her Facebook page. This was the issue, her page was not showing up publicly at all. Many people run into this issue before and there are a few reasons why your page might not be showing up.